April 2006
Health, Legal, Media, Police The Constabulary has charged James Helmudson with three counts of kidnapping, two counts of attempted murder, soliciting, dealing in narcotics and a number of other lesser offences following investigations into his affairs and those of the Unification Theorists Elect. Helmudson has been moved to a maximum security facility from his home (where he was under house arrest) ahead of his trial, no bail has been set. Curiously, Helmudson, speaking through his solicitor, Henry Melanchton appears at ease with his situation, commenting that this may be an ideal opportunity for him to get some serious studies done. His trail is tentatively scheduled for next year and if convicted he could face a life sentence. Legal, Media, Police, Politics The final arrest warrant for James Helmudson was personally signed by John Winters, an unusual move given that they are normally only signed by members of the Crown Prosecution Service. Why Winters chose to become personally involved in the matter remains a mystery, especially given his apparent friendship with Helmudson in the past. Some have began to question whether he is in fact seeking to silence Helmudson due to potential blackmail information he may have over him, although this is a theory that hasn’t really gained much currency outside of the fringe lunatic community. Bureaucracy, Health, Police, Underworld Security at the Penkhull Maximum Security Hospital has been increased following the arrival of its newest inmate, James Helmudson. Helmudson has been placed in the mental institution for his own protection after he was discovered talking to a number of unseen people during his arrest. A subsequent search of his home found that there was no one else other than the arresting officers present. Obviously there are some who doubt the validity of this statement and think that it would be easier for “an accident” to happen to Helmudson in a secure hospital than in a prison, noting that although he has expressed unusual beliefs in the past, Helmudson has always been of sound mind. Church, Health, Occult Oh, that nice Mr. Helmudson? Yes, he’s very quite, always polite to all of the other staff and patients, you never hear him raise his voice or anything. Indeed he’s had particular success with Charlie; he hadn’t spoken a word since that nice lady brought him in over two years ago. Anyway, we just can’t keep him quiet these days, such an eloquent speaking voice and quite knowledgeable too; always quoting from the scriptures. Helmudson is also helping with the other patients as well, suggesting to the doctors possible ways they could make their lives better, and most of the time his suggestions work! I really find it hard to believe all of the things they’re writing about him in the press. ~ Unnamed Nurse, Penkhull Maximum Security Hospital. Occult, Street With both Helmudson and the Unification Theorists Elect out of the way, who will now become the major occult player in the city? A number of individuals appear to be lined up for the position already, but given the hostility that Helmudson has faced it is likely that they too will get a rough ride from the establishment whoever they are. Interestingly, one of the former members who have not been arrested have stepped into fill the void, remarking that they are unconvinced of the charges against Helmudson and foresee that he will be released with a full apology in the near future. Health, High Society, Media, Occult For someone who had so many friends in high places, the lack of support for James Helmudson must have come as a major shock. None of the politicians, industrialists or business leaders he helped to power have since come to his aid despite the evidence against him appearing to be so weak, indeed many former acquaintances have sought to distance themselves from him. Curiously Helmudson remains unperturbed by events, stating that this has been a good way to determine who his enemies truly are. Occult If you wake a sleeping dragon, don’t be surprised if it turns around to bite. It is better to let them lie, no matter whose bed they choose. ~ Caoilfhionn Ashen, Staffordshire Moorlands. Bureaucracy, Legal, Police, Politics Whilst the Constabulary appears to have successful made charges against James Helmudson, success with the Sandernacht Two is proving far more elusive. Unlike with the Andrew Sant trial where their hands were tied with regards the evidence (and it was pretty much assumed that he was guilty), here they have been able to review the evidence from the beginning and cast a degree of doubt on its validity. Both of the main suspects continue to enjoy a degree of notoriety, indeed Nathanial Redd appears to be positively thriving on it, much to the chagrin of his legal team. Finance, Industry, Media, Police, Politics Okay, crazy theory number - hell I’ve forgotten there are so many going around at the moment! What if the local industrialist Edward Green was really Sandernacht? He’s certainly got the personnel power and influence to bankroll such an organisation, and his personnel habits have been well publicised of late. The Constabulary have yet to launch a full investigation into the matter but haven’t discounted rumours that they may be looking into the allegations further. If true then all of these years of allegations that the city’s major crime lord was being financed by its industrialists will also be proven, which could have a disastrous effect on the local economy. Legal, Media, Police So now we’ve got a fifth suspect for the true identity of Sandernacht? If you ask me it sounds as if The Constabulary is desperately searching for an answer at any cost and hoping that the media will be able to lend weight to its claims. It’s a strategy that has worked in the past, but it does create problems when a trial comes to court as there are then accusations of trial be media. Still this doesn’t mean that there isn’t going to be a lot of interest in his movements over the next few weeks, at least until the Constabulary makes a decision either way on the matter. Church, Legal, Media, Police, Politics With the growing interest in the affairs of Edward Green and his possible involvement with the Sandernacht Group, the possibility that they may be supplying arms to terrorist groups has once again been raised. The allegations follow a supposed meeting between Green and leaders in the Muslim community, an area that investigations have shown Green has no interest in beforehand. Muslim leaders were quick to dismiss the allegations, stating that they have always condemned any terrorist attacks and that there have been no arrests of any member of their community in the city in relation to terrorist actions. The allegations have stirred up a political storm, with some expressing concern that far right elements in local government might be trying to stir up resentment of the Muslim community. Church, Legal, Police, Politics Politicians from a number of parties have condemned an article linking the city’s Muslim community with terrorism, commenting that there any investigations into terrorist attacks have always had the full support of the community and that no links have ever been found (indeed, it would appear that they are one of the few communities not to have terrorist links in the city). Far right groups have remained understandably quiet on the matter; many believe that they may be behind the allegations in the first place. Health, Street, Underworld Whilst the Sandernacht Group continues to thrive, and the Consortium continues to try to expand its borders, the other gangs in the city are having a harder time in gaining a piece of the pie at the moment. The Sandernacht Group continues to have the lions share of the drugs and illegal weaponry market, whilst in contrast the Consortium appears to be avoiding drugs (and the bad press that goes with them) in favour of older, more tried and tested means of organised crime. Meanwhile, a new individual appears to be trying to muscle in on the city’s security market, a lucrative business as it allows you to control the drugs in an establishment. High Society, Police, Street A lot of the clubs are complaining that someone is trying to muscle in on the doorman market, possibly as a way of controlling the distribution of drugs in the city. Only the smaller clubs have been targeted at the moment, but how long will it be before they try it with one of the prestige clubs (which have traditionally been drug free environments, although this image was tarnished slightly last month by the arrest of two financiers for carrying cocaine at one of the clubs) at the centre of the city? High Society, Legal, Media, Police Remember the story of those two guys who were arrested for carrying a quantity of cocaine last month? It turns out that they were released without charge shortly afterwards (or that the charges were dropped to misdemeanour status, no one is quiet sure), despite their being solid evidence against them that would have secured a conviction. Some have begun to question whether its one rule for the rich, one rule for the poor; both men had salaries in the six figure bracket and we know the kind of protection the Constabulary affords them. Street, Underworld The violence surrounding the possible hunt for the snitch who ratted out the Sandernacht Two has died down a little, although a disturbing number of bodies continue to turn up in unusual places, more often than not being traced back to some involvement with the gang. The Sandernacht Group has been noted for its “house cleaning” policies in the past, it periodically appears to clear away the deadwood from its organisation in order to maintain its efficiency. Media, Police, Politics, Underworld An unknown group has targeted a number of Sandernacht controlled crack houses across the city, firebombing the premises and burning any drugs found on the premises. The Constabulary has expressed concern about the rise on vigilante style attacks against the Sandernacht Group of late, although other political groups have backed the attacks, commenting that if the Constabulary cannot do anything to stem the increase in drugs on the streets, then it may be time , for the public to take matters into their own hands. Meanwhile, for every crack house that is burned down, two spring up in its place. Media, Police, Street, Transport, Underworld Rumours of a white slaving ring operating in the city have begun to surface, although neither the Constabulary nor the immigration authorities can prove whether or not it actually exists. The ring is believed to focus on the transportation of mostly women from the eastern European countries into the country, from where they are being sold into prostitution, although rumours of other, more sordid concerns are also being spoken of. The Constabulary is asking that anyone who may have information regarding this issue come forward to prevent further suffering. Church, Media, Politics, Underworld Church leaders have asked local politicians to set aside funding to shelter illegal immigrants in the city and victims of the supposed white slavery ring thought to be operating in the city. The call has been praised by locally based pressure groups who don’t believe that the church becomes involved enough in the politics of the city and fail to raise concern about subjects that could potentially have an effect on many people’s lives. Others have noted that this isn’t exactly true, that whilst the church only becomes involved on an occasional basis, other religions continue to have a very active say in the affairs of the city. Transport, Underworld How on earth does the Constabulary think that there could be so-called “white slavers” in the city, you can’t move anything in without someone knowing about it, and that kind of publicity isn’t good for business! Plus there’s no real money in prostitution any more, the city is oversaturated with brothels to the point that they are all having to drop their prices to stay in business, or offer other extras. Of course that’s creating problems of its own, but we like to keep quiet about that if possible. Health, Media, Street, Underworld Local health clinics are reporting a rise in the number of sexually transmitted diseases across the city, with the most likely reason being the increase in the number of men using prostitutes in the city. Indeed, the rise in the number of men using the services of prostitutes and the number of brothels has caused concern amongst a wide number of authorities, all of whom fear that it could have a major effect on the health of the city. The Constabulary has been quick to act on the matter, shutting down a number of establishments in an order to control the spread, but has so far only succeeded in driving the trade underground. Bureaucracy, Media, Transport, Underworld Why is (or was) prostitution so big within the city? One explanation is its centre of the travel network for the midlands; a higher number of salesmen pass through the area than surrounding city’s, increasing the “desire” for the service. Interestingly, this is one of the unofficial reasons the authorities are seeking to improve travel across the city, faster links mean less people are likely to stop when passing through and reducing business opportunities as it were. Whether this will have the desired effect remains to be seen, but it is an interesting proposition. Finance, Legal, University The prospect of students completing mid term exams in time has been out into severe jeopardy following a split amongst teaching staff at the two main universities in the city over pay grades and research grants. Investigations have been launched into the possible illegal funding of courses after confusion over possible “double funding” of projects emerged during a financial review. The university has agreed to honour any qualifications gained by students, but there remains the possibility that a number of courses will be cancelled at the end of this financial year.